For those attending the talk tomorrow: If you turn into Elin Way from the Meldreth High Street (almost opposite the Primary School) the hall is about 200m down on the left. The entry door is on the left hand side of the hall. Parking is in the road. 7.15 for 7.30 start.

The start of my second season in multi-sport racing and what was so familiar 6 months ago is now all forgotten. Thank goodness I've still got my pre-race checklist, so Saturday is spent ticking the boxes and going through the routine. Much time is spent deciding what to wear and how to cope with getting hot on the run but then wind-chill on the bike. I finally went for Tri suit + arm warmers, buff and a short sleeved top. Then windproof cycling jacket and gloves for the ride, easy to put on/off in transition.
Sunday morning at 05:00 was +2 degrees and drizzly, frost on the car park at 07:00 but melted for the 08:30 start.
Out and back undulating run course, not muddy but quite wet. Also narrow, so a slow start but I worked into the run and once warmed up managed to pick off competitors one by one. Surprised to see myself coming home in 39 mins which didn't equate to the 6:45 pace, the course was only about 9.4km, why?
I had the forethought to take my gloves off in the last Km of the run but my glasses were covered in mist from the drizzle. New aero-helmet with visor on and I couldn't see my bike in front of me! Helmet off, glasses off, helmet on, that's better but 30s wasted.
Again an undulating bike course, 2 laps to St Neots and back. Too many riders made it hard to avoid drafting and the motorbike marshals were active, telling people off. I felt that I struggled on the bike, having only just fitted aero bars (not the chocolate ones), I struggled to put enough power down but, I was able to stand/walk and even run after the ride, so that was a bonus.
Eased into the last run but knew this is where the race could be lost, so once I was used to running, pushed hard to try and catch runners ahead. Also I knew that you get a good lift if you can pass people, but I had to fight to do it.
It's very hard to compare races, but the last race I did was also a Duathlon. This was 30s slower but the course was slower. As a gauge, the winner was 5 mins slower than before, so I guess I should be pleased.
I was, of course, very happy to see 'AG position: 3' on the little paper slip after the race! Denmark here we come...